By Aina Akinjide, Abuja Bureau chief
This is exclusive. The Source Magazine can authoritatively report that except the unexpected happens between now and 2027, Seyi Tinubu, powerful son of Nigeria’s President, Bola Tinubu, will succeed the incumbent Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu.
Though he has not uttered a word about his ambition since a hitherto unknown group, Coalition of Nigerian Youth Leaders, CONYL opened the floodgate of endorsements and calls on him to contest the 2027 Lagos governorship election which is currently sweeping the social and and traditional media spaces, Seyi, according to a source conversant with the series of intrigues and brinkmanships that will eventually berth his ambition on the shores of reality, has long been positioned for the State’s topmost seat.
“There is no going back”, he told the the magazine, adding, “for your information, Seyi Tinubu is Lagos State’s next Governor”.
Referring to Seyi’s father who was Lagos state Governor between 1999 and 2007, the source said: “Father and son are on the threshold of history. Both will be recorded in history as having been governors of the same state at different epochs”
The magazine learnt that all other contenders, except one, for the Lagos APC guber ticket have been asked to stand down their ambitions in favour of Seyi and they have complied.
“As it is now, Seyi is getting the APC ticket almost unopposed; consistent with the Lagos governorship succession module within the state’s political structure founded by Seyi’s father. Once a candidate or a successor has been endorsed or chosen by handpicked kingmakers, primaries become mere formalities as the other contenders are asked to withdraw from the race, and then compensated with other political offices.
“This is what will happen in Seyi’s case. Other aspirants angling for the ticket have been asked to stand down their ambitions. They will be rewarded with other elected or appointed political offices”, the magazine was told.
Meanwhile, the Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Mudashiru Obasa, who is one of the contenders for the ticket, the magazine has been told, has, allegedly, refused all entreaties to withdraw from the race and focus on his job as Speaker. The Speaker, the magazine was further informed, has vowed to pursue his ambition to a logical conclusion, insisting that he is a bonafide Indigenous Lagosian, and, therefore, qualified to rule the State.
In his speech during the recent presentation of Lagos State’s 2025 budget proposal by Governor Sanwo-Olu to the House, Obasa emphatically restated his indigenship.”I am Obasa, and qualified to run for Lagos Governor.
“Becoming Governor is secondary; it is something that I have not given serious consideration. Nevertheless, that does not mean I am too young or lack experience to run; whereas, those who have been before me are not better off… It is also important to correct the impression from some naysayers who have been insinuating that I made payment to seek for blood relation in Ojo to validate my candidacy to run as governor.
“Of course, I have never denied the fact that I am Obasa. But rather, I have never claimed to be related to Onikoyi, Oniru, or any of the other popular Lagos families as the case may be. I can indeed never run from the fact that I am related to my Obasa family in Ojo. But I do not need local validity to contest or run. If eventually I am contesting, I will do so from Agege”, the Speaker had said, signalling a potential face off between him and Lagos’ feudal-like political establishment.
Watchers of the unfolding race for Alausa, the Lagos state seat of power believe that Obasa’s defiant speech was a veiled taunt at Seyi to the effect that Lagos governorship is not for non-indegeneous Lagosians. Seyi and his father are, it has been reported, from Iragbiji in Osun but claim Lagos indigenship.
Speculations are, however, rife that the Speaker indeed recently procured indigenship of Ojo in Lagos to solidify and strengthen his bid to replace Governor Sanwo-Olu. A group, Coalition of Lagos Indigenous Youths, which is opposed to Seyi’s governorship bid on the ground that he is, allegedly, not an indigenous Lagosian, in a press statement last week, while rejecting him, also made insinuations about Obasa’s alleged indigenship procurement
Said the group: “We are also aware of the moves by some non-indigenes to penetrate our traditional rulers in getting endorsements and ratifications from them.
“Recently, one of the aspirants suddenly traced his ancestry to Ojo Local Government after spending more than a decade in power without identifying with the Awori people of Ojo in Lagos State”
The group then warned:”We are hereby calling on the Oba of Lagos to beware of persons who will soon seek indigenship of Lagos State because of 2027.
“We will fight dirty if the Oba of Lagos allows such anti-Lagos Indigenes move”
Meanwhile, according multiple sources within the Lagos APC and national secretariat of the party in Abuja, Obasa’s continued intransigence may cost him his exalted Speaker position.
“He will continue to be engaged and given reasons why he should bury his governorship ambition, but if he carries on, of course, there will be consequences and one of them is losing his position as Speaker”, one of the sources revealed.
His corruption case with the EFCC, another source hinted, may also be resurrected. The anti-corrupt Agency had September last year, without stating any reason, dramatically withdrew an alleged money laundering suit it had instituted against the Speaker and unfreezed his account it had secured a court order in 2020 to freeze.
Recall that the EFCC had in October 2020 taken the Speaker into its custody in response to corruption allegations against him.
